“Alright, homie, you’ve been ducking me for the last few weeks. You promised to explain, so fuckin’ spill it already, gringo,” Marco exclaimed, his voice rising over the thumping Latin music from the nearby beach club. His dark blue suit jacket hung open over his bright white dress shirt as he pounded on the table, demanding a response.

Jason just smirked, sipping his whiskey sour, taking his sweet time with it. He set his drink down as he rolled up the sleeves of his silky black button-up that was tucked into the waistband of his jeans. He joined Marco, sitting down at the rare free table they managed to snatch. It had been just over two weeks since he’d come back home to Florida, leaving his mom and new girlfriend back in his hometown. He’d been so busy catching up with work and getting back into his training regime that he barely had a moment to breathe while trying to keep up with Jillian’s frequent calls and texts. However, she had been a little quiet the last few days.

“Chill, man. Can both ass cheeks hit the seat before you start interrogating me?” he quipped, as they both laughed a bit. After the laughter died down, Marco nudged his friend gently.

“I’m done being patient. You refuse to tell me anything at work, and dude, seriously, every time I catch you with that goofy grin while looking at your phone, it gives me the goddamn creeps. If I weren’t worried you’d catch me and grind my bones to make your bread, I’d swipe that thing and do some snooping myself.”

Jason chuckled and sipped his drink, his grin widening.

“I wasn’t quite ready to say anything yet. And I know you’re a fuckin’ loudmouth when you hear something juicy for the first time,” he shot back, setting his glass down and reaching for his phone.

“You used to be the guy that no one wanted to be around cause you never left work mode. I could barely get you to relax when we would go out. Then you take a vacation for once and come back as someone I don’t even recognize… I swear if you start ignoring me for that phone, I’m gonna make you pay,” Marco said, sounding a bit fed up as Jason started staring at his phone.

“Sorry, man. I'm just a little worried. Haven’t heard from her all day after she said good morning, and she has been kind of quiet,” Jason sighed, trying to explain. Marco let out a long, frustrated groan.

“Annnnnnnnd?” He was tired of vague responses or none at all. Jason glanced back at his friend, lifting a hand and scratching the back of his head. His friend gave him a hard glare at the indecision on Jason’s face.

“Alright, alright, fine... I uhh, she is…” He hesitated, then flashed a shy smile, unable to contain it.

“What are you, a seventeen year old girl? Just fuckin’ spit it out, dude!” Marco’s fist thudded on the table, just enough to make the drinks rattle. Jason let out a groan.

“Okay, okay. I’ve got a girlfriend, alright? Her name is Jillian. Are you happy now, dick?” he said, a hint of annoyance in his tone. Marco held his friend’s gaze for a long while.

“Not at all! What’s there to be happy about?” he blurted out, leaving Jason looking a bit taken aback.

“Wait, you’re not?” he asked tentatively, but Marco just groaned in response.

“Why would I be thrilled that my best friend got himself a ball and chain? Weekends like this are basically gonna be a thing of the past before you know it. She’ll start wanting you to spend every one with her. And then, bam, she’ll want you to ditch me altogether. It’s what they do, y’know? They slowly start to strangle your social life until it revolves solely around them. Girlfriends are like vampires when it comes to that shit,” Marco grumbled, his expression souring with a scowl. Jason’s mouth gaped slightly, a little stunned by the sudden rant.

“Wait, what? Then why were you giving me all that advice over the phone?” Jason queried, very perplexed. Marco let out another groan, his voice full of exasperation.

“Dude, I wasn’t trying to get you a fuckin’ girlfriend. I just wanted to get you laid! It’s not every day I hear my boy even mention a woman, so I thought. Maybe if I get your balls drained, you will stop being so angry all the time. But I guess it was too effective.”

Jason’s expression shifted to a silent acknowledgment of understanding, also trying to hold back a laugh at his friend’s confidence that the advice was what had done it.

“I see, I see,” he replied with a chuckle.

“I mean, I definitely got some… well, more like a lot once that seal was broken. But she’s still out in Colorado, so unless she is visiting, I don’t see our weekends going anywhere.”

He took another sip of his drink. This information slowly sunk in, and suddenly, it clicked for Marco.

“Hold up... Colorado... girlfriend…Jillian…” he murmured as if the pieces of a puzzle were finally falling into place in his mind.

“Easy there. Don’t hurt yourself, Einstein,” Jason teased with a grin.

“So, that girl you were seeking advice about? She is officially your girlfriend now?” Marco clarified before asking a continuous stream of questions.

“Yup,” Jason replied casually to them all.

“While you were on vacation?”

“Yup.”

“The same one who made your high school days feel like a marathon of misery?”

“Yup.”

“You two fought like crazy while you were there, right?”

“Sorta.”

“And you said that she was freaking about some other guy in her sleep?”

“…Yes.”

Jason desperately wanted to explain, but he didn’t want to say anything too much. There was a moment of silence that hung in the air, the music still thumping in the background.

“Well...my friend, have you ever heard the saying, ‘Don’t stick your dick in crazy’?”

“Yup.”

“And you still fucked her and made her your girlfriend?”

“Yup.”

“…She a freak?”

Jason burst into laughter, Inhaling his whiskey mid-sip.

“Haha! Seriously, what the fuck, man?” He laughed heartily with a cough, pounding his chest.

“What?! It’s like a rule of nature or something. The psycho ones are always the best in bed. They’ve got to compensate somehow,” Marco remarked casually, shrugging. “I’m not saying there’s anything wrong. I’m just stating the facts.”

Jason shook his head in amusement.

“ Well, first off, calling my girl a psycho isn’t a smart thing to do if you like your teeth arranged how they are. And she’s not crazy, just a brat. But she more than makes up for it. She’s sweet and caring, smart, and has a butt that doesn’t belong on someone her size,” he said, trailing off as if lost in the memories playing in his mind.

“I…I actually miss her a ton.” He said, letting out a heavy sigh

He stared down at his drink for a long moment, lost in thought. Marco watched his friend get lost in his own melancholy before deciding to change the subject.

“You came back early, right? I wasn’t expecting you at work that Friday. What’s the story with that, anyway?”

The mention of being forced to leave early brought a harsh scowl to Jason’s face. The image of Jill’s tearful expression haunted him.

“Don’t even get me started, man. It’s all thanks to that dick face, Vince. I swear when I found out why he dragged me home early from vacation...” He had to stop. His eye twitched in anger just thinking about it.

“Damn, what did Bitch Boy do this time?” Marco asked, taking a swig of his beer, curiosity piqued.

Jason was fuming as he recounted how Vince had him rush home from the first vacation he’d ever taken just to set up his surround sound at his house for his upcoming party. It was a stupidly simple task for anyone with a brain. Plug in a few things, check the wireless connections, and move the speakers in place. It was done in about an hour.

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“I swear, I was this fucking close to popping him in the mouth the next time I saw him. He doesn't know how lucky he is I don't fuck up his life. I have seen so much shady shit on his laptop that would get his ass thrown in jail,” Jason muttered through clenched teeth. Marco’s eyes widened at his friend’s revelation.

“So why not do something about it?” he asked. Jason let out a heavy sigh and took a long drink of his whiskey sour.

“Because I know that if I did, the most I could achieve is getting him booted from the company, maybe sentence him to some jail time if his lawyers don’t get him off. Then, while he’s on bond or something, he’d just use his daddy’s cash to make my entire life around me a living hell. If it was just me I had to worry about, maybe, but there is no way I’m risking my mom and Jill.”

The two sat in silence, wearing matching frowns as they mulled over the situation. The silence was broken as Marco chimed in. Another change of subject was the only thing he could do.

“So, about this Chica you’ve got.”

Jason's head shot up quickly to look at his friend, swiftly cutting him off.

“Yeah, don’t call her that, dude. I can’t say much, but just don’t.”

There was a seriousness in Jason’s expression that halted Marco in his tracks, prompting only a slight nod from him.

“Alright sure... Well, with all the bad blood you and her had, I am pretty surprised you didn’t just hate fuck her but made her your woman,” Marco said, taking another pull from his bottle of beer. Jason nodded subtly.

“I couldn’t tell you why, but after spending just a little time together…” He paused, rubbing the back of his neck. Looking down slightly, he wrapped both hands around his drink. It was hard to admit just how quick and easy it was to fall in love with Jill.

Marco let out a long sigh, leaning back in his seat and draped one arm over the back of his chair. “Man, who would’ve thought you’d go all soft for a woman like that? And the one that’s the reason you had problems with them in the first place,” he said, finishing his beer with one last swig.

“Yeah, yeah, I know. I didn’t see it coming either. It just sorta happened. One moment I’m minding my own business, the next I’m at the bottom of the stairs staring up at her big, soft, plump...” His voice trailed off as his eyes glazed over, and he drifted into space.

Observing the expression in his friend’s eyes, Marco felt an overwhelming curiosity bubbling up. “Alright, homie, come on, let's see it. You gotta show me a pic,” he demanded casually. Jason’s distant gaze snapped back to reality at the request, his eyes narrowing as he gave Marco a scrutinizing look.

“…A pic of what?” A flame of jealous rage tinged his voice.

Marco couldn’t help but roll his eyes. “Come on, don’t play dumb. A picture of her, dude.”

Jason wasn’t really catching that real request his friend was asking for. He briefly glanced down at his phone before confirming,

“Errrrm, fine, just gimme a sec,” he muttered, not exactly thrilled about sharing a picture of his woman, his selfish side coming out of hiding. Jason took a deep breath, giving his friend a serious look.

“Listen up. I’m telling you this because you’re my closest friend, and I trust you. But keep this shit close to the chest, got it? I don’t need the Monday morning office gossip hens knocking my office door down.” He said it with all the gravity he could muster. Marco just rolled his eyes, nodding eagerly, making a grabbing motion with his hand as he anticipated the promised juicy picture.

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Let's see it already,” he said with a grin. When Jason finally turned his phone and revealed the photo on his phone, Marco’s smirk vanished instantly.

“What the fuck is this? Some Canela smooching your cheek? Where’s the culo?” Marco protested, his voice rising in disbelief.

“What? You wanted a pic of her, so here it is. What were you expecting?” Jason’s confusion was palpable. Marco couldn’t help but facepalm and groan audibly.

“One of her ass! I’m not asking for a nude, just...”

“Yeah, no. Not gonna happen,” Jason cut in, a hint of annoyance in his voice.

“I’m not asking for it. She’s your girlfriend, so she’s a dead fish to me already. I just wanna see what’s got my best friend swooning like he’s crushing on the high school quarterback,” Marco retorted, and Jason rolled his eyes.

“Oh, fuck you, man.”

Jason grumbled as he scrolled through his phone, holding it close as he searched for a picture that captured the junk in her trunk. He needed one that didn’t show off too much, something he could actually share with Marco. There were several that were very much for his eyes only, and he could feel himself grow aroused as he scrolled through them. His jeans shifted as he crossed his legs. Fuck he missed sex. Going from multiple times a day to nothing was rough. Eventually, he settled on a photo from their second mini golf outing. She was concentrating on her shot, bent over slightly. The leggings she wore did an amazing job accentuating her curves. The fabric clinging to her bubbly butt. He had no idea this would be so hard, but he sucked it up and tapped the picture and turned the phone again to show his friend.

Marco scrutinized the picture, his eyes narrowing as they focused on her slender upper body, which bordered on being unappealingly thin. But as his gaze moved to her waist, it was as if she transformed into a completely different person, albeit still believable. He had tried to get Jason with many posterior gifted ladies. Many were bigger than this, but none had such a dramatic change between their asses and the rest of their body as this.

“El culo del diablo,” he whispered, performing the catholic cross on himself as he stared. Jason hastily pulled his phone back.

“Satisfied?” he grumbled. Marco glanced back at his friend in mild shock.

“May God have mercy on your penis, my friend.”

This brought back a small smile to Jason’s face. He was about to say something else, but his phone suddenly started buzzing. A picture of Jillian’s face, hands up in her hair, casting a sultry gaze at the camera while biting her lower lip, popped up on his screen.

“Oh, speak of the devil!” He tried to sound casual but couldn’t hide his excitement. “Just a sec, dude. I’ll be right back.”

He might have ignored the call if he had heard from her earlier in the day. Despite his affection for her, spending time with his best friend was still important to him. He didn’t want what Marco was talking about earlier to actually come true.

He took his phone and casually rose from the table, strolling a few feet away.

“Hey, babe, there you are. Been wondering where you’ve been all day. What’s up?” A grin played on his lips as he spoke.

“Hey, yeah. It’s been one heck of a day over here. Sorry if it’s a little late for you? I always forget you’re two hours ahead. I can hear music. Am I interrupting anything?” Jillian’s voice had a bit of uncertainty.

“Nah, it’s all good. Just out grabbing a few drinks, catching up with Marco,” he reassured her, pacing a bit as he chatted on the phone.

“Marco, huh?” As Jillian’s uncertainty escalated into suspicion, Jason chuckled.

“Relax, babe, it’s just a guys’ night. We aren’t going to any clubs. I was actually planning to bring it up with him tonight, actually,” he said, attempting to reassure her.

“Mmhmm, well, never mind that. Do you have a moment to talk? I can call back later or tomorrow if you’re too busy,” she offered, almost as if she hoped he’d take her up on it, but he completely missed the cue.

“Nah, it’s all good. I haven’t heard from you all day, so I can spare a bit. What’s on your mind?” he said, glancing over at Marco, who was now engrossed in conversation with a busty waitress. There was a little pause before Jillian spoke in again.

“Oh, you know, I just wanted to hear your voice mostly. Today’s been a bit of a rollercoaster, to say the least, haha,” she added, though her laughter sounded forced. Jason couldn’t help but pick up on the change in her tone. It was at this point that he noticed she wasn’t really using any pet names or terms of endearment either.

“Is everything alright, babe? What’s been going on today?” he inquired, growing more concerned by the second.

“Yeah…sort of...I mean, it’s a bit of a mixed bag full of ups and downs. I had a regular check-up with the doctor the other day,” she explained, though it didn’t do anything to ease his worries.

“Oh, how’d it go?” Jason asked, pausing his pacing as he held the phone to his ear.

“Well, I’ve packed on another five pounds since last time,” Jillian said, with a touch of cheer in her voice, and he couldn’t help but smile.

“That’s wonderful, hun. You’re kicking this thing’s butt. I’m really proud of you,” he said, doing his best to encourage her on her journey back to a healthy weight.

“Thanks...” Her short answer was not helpful and, of course, only made him more worried.

“Jill? What’s wrong? Did they say something else? Honestly, you’re really starting to worry me. I don’t like being kept in the dark, you know that,” Jason said, his patience wearing thin from her fluctuating moods over the phone. Not being able to gauge her expressions or body language made it hard to understand what was going on.

“Alright... but... I need you to promise me something,” Jillian said, her voice trembling as if she were on the brink of tears.

“Anything, babe,” he assured her, confident in his tone.

“Promise me you won’t get mad?” she whispered timidly.

That phrase really rubbed him the wrong way. Horrible thoughts swirled in his mind, wondering if she was slipping back into her eating disorder and lying about her progress with her weight. Or maybe… she cheated on him.

“Whatever it is, we can talk about it without letting anger get the best of us. I promise... no anger,” Jason reassured her, hoping that he could keep his promise. The sound of her taking a deep breath came over the phone.

“Thank you, Jason. I know we said we wouldn’t say it until we saw each other again, but I really, really need to hear it from you now,” she confessed, her voice already choked with tears.

Jason didn’t need any hints to know what Jillian needed to hear.

“Of course, hun. I love you, babe.”

She sniffled, trying to steady her breathing. “I love you too…Thank you, I feel better...”

“Now tell me what’s wrong. I can’t help unless I know.”

There was a quiet moment as he waited for her to collect herself. He didn’t want to pressure her, sensing she was trying to stay calm.

“I’ve been panicking about this all day, debating whether to tell you or not. But my mom pushed me to tell you. And… you of all people deserve to know more than anyone... sniff.” It was obvious that she was crying at this point. “I’m just so scared, Jase... I wish you were here. That's all I want right now.”

Her teary words made his jaw clench with painful force. Trying to keep his heart and mind open, he braced for whatever she was about to say.

“Jill...” he murmured before she finally shared what was weighing so heavily on her mind.

“Jason…I’m pregnant.”